Danae continues, “I want you to be my minstrel.”

“What?” That’s quite a request.

“A knight, like me, needs a minstrel. You should come with me.” She points her nose high into the air.

“Like the minstrels for Sir Robin?”

“Who’s Sir Robin?”

“There would have to be a rule: no eating me.”

“I can magnanimously agree to that one. You don’t look very tasty.”

"And no coconuts."

"Huh?"

She stops being able to hold it in, and laughs for thirty seconds. Then she gets serious. “No, for real. I have been having a hard time freeing the slaves. There’s only me, and I spend most of my time meditating, rather than hunting for slavers. If you’re serious about owing me, then come with me.”

“Why? You don’t even know me.”

“I know that you freed 37 slaves, got nothing from the deal, and lost a friend doing it. I know that you can keep me going 24/7, rather than my having to meditate 24 hours for every seven I’m awake. I know that I’ve never in my life felt anything like the speed I got when you were drumming. I think I know something. If you came with me, we could free them all.”

“That’s a big goal, little D.”

“It’s Danae.”

“Sorry. I’ve got a name thing.”

“You said you owe me big. Was that real, or bull puckey. Come on, Snake, we can do it.”

“That's a big promise. Free all the slaves in the world? We won't even know if we're done. How long?”

“You’ll be my minstrel for a year and a day. And then we’re even.”

“Poetic. Will there be dragons to slay?”

“Goro is our friend. No slaying him.”

“Shame. Shining armor?”

“I use hair armor. You should too.”

“Oh. Penitents. I suppose you’ll be using whips and ropes and self-flagellating.”

“We flagellate others.”

“No flagellating me.”

“Spoilsport.”

“And I suppose that means no lances.”

“We could call you Lance.”

“Lance is not a minstrel’s name. Maybe it could be you. Dame Lance.”

“I’m certainly not Lance. Dame will work, though.”

“If I am to enter your service, I have conditions, Dame Whips and Chains.”

“It’s whips and ropes. No chains. I shall grant you an audience, Fool.”

“I’m not a fool, I’m a minstrel. Condition 1: No funny costumes.”

“Does that mean you’re going to change?”

“Ouch. This isn’t a funny costume. It’s a monkey suit.”

“Very well. I accept your first condition. Are there more?”

“I am in charge of the music list. I take requests, but not demands.”

“If my ears start to bleed, I reserve the right to ask you to be quiet.”

“Very well. If there is music, I choose it, but you may ask for silence. Then I'll make it silent for you.”

“I magnanimously consent to your second condition. Will there be more? This is becoming tedious, Fool.”

“Still not a fool. Fitz’s fool was definitely more androgynous.”

“I loved those movies. And The Fool was my absolute favorite.”

“Condition three. This is the hard one. I don’t like to play alone. I’m a musician. I need a band.”

“Several minstrels seems appropriate for a knight.”

“Seriously, music isn’t really an option for me. I need music to live.”

“If you consent to be my minstrel, I will sing with you in the evenings.”

“You can sing?”

“Daddy and me went to church every Sunday. My church had a children’s choir and a youth choir. I sang on Sundays, and practiced every Wednesday since I was four.”

“Rock on. Well then Lady Dae ”

“It’s Danae.”

“Dame Danae, I will consent to enter your service for a year and a day.” I doff a fictional hat, and bow deeply. “Will it just be the two of us? I can probably find us some help, but I don’t know how safe it is with just the two of us.”

“I’ve been traveling for two years, mostly alone. We don’t need anyone else.”

“We could ask.”

“Fine.”

“Begging the lady’s pardon, I’ll talk to the others.”

“Be off with you, fool.”

“As you wish, Lady D.”

“It’s Danae.”

“I’m a minstrel, not a fool.” I head out to talk to the others again.

Goro is a combat monster. He’s as scary as Danae is in a fight, and substantially scarier outside, insofar as eight feet, four arms, and firebreath is scarier than a five-foot cowgirl with a lasso. Naturally, I go to him first, asking if he’ll come with us.

He’s not interested. He says that doing this counts as his pay it forward, so we’re even. He’s going off to the zone 2 gate, and no extra year of freeing the slaves is about to stand in his way. I again wish him good luck, and head on to my next target: Carter. I get no further with him than with Goro. Then I move on to Priya.

I should’ve talked to her before talking to my new benefactors, but I was pretty set on thanking the folks I needed to thank, and offering them help. Priya is in the wagon, helping the now ex-slaves. She’s checking them, and now starting to physically rehabilitate them. She takes several of them out and makes them walk by the cart for five minutes before sitting them back down.

Eventually she makes time for me. “How are you Snake?”

“I’m doin’ pretty good, doc. How’re you holding up?”

“Well, you saved all the hard work for me, but I’ll survive. Are you doing okay, really? Steve dying while coming to save you has to be traumatic.”

“Music is therapy for me, P. I’m gonna be good. What’ve you been doing while I’ve been away? I never heard.”

“I’ve been working at the hospital. You know, it’s comfortable for me. When the whole world turns upside down and the super shrub tells you that you need to be stronger, how many folks choose to be healers? I’ll give you a hint. It’s not that many.

“So I’ve been super busy there. I’ve made a lot of friends.”

“I think you saved me by having all these friends. Carter and Goro said they came because they owed you favors.”

“They didn’t owe me. I healed them, they paid, and we’re square.”

“That’s not how they see it.”

“Hmph.”

“I was wondering what you’re gonna be doing now. Are you going back to wandering? Are you staying in town? Are you going through the gate? Will there be new adventures?”

“The best thing I can do right now for humankind is to stay in Cerberus. I’m the only one in the hospital who went to medical school. I worked as a trauma surgeon, Snake. They need me, and I help people every day. At least for a while, I should stay there, and help people heal.”

“That seems as smart as you usually are. I’m not surprised. I’d been coming to see if I could steal you away. Danae is on an anti-slavery crusade, and she’s asked me to come with her. We could really use someone like you.”

“Thanks, Snake. That’s a really good thing to do. Those people need to be saved. Just like these ones. I wish I was able to go with you. This was the close one; only a week, round trip. Other slaveholders are months or years of travel away from here at normal speeds. I can’t actually go. Probably a few people died because I missed just a week. This one, I did for you. I can't leave for longer.”

“I'm not surprised, but I had to ask. Thanks. I’ll miss ya, Stinky.”

“Keep safe, Dirty.”

The last one to talk to is Miguel. He hasn't said much since Steve died, and I don't know how it's going to go. I walk over.

"Hey Miguel."